


Ain't Nothing I Would Rather Do

by Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus



Category: Venom (Comics), Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Eddie is a closeted nerd, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, FWP, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, M/M, Music, Power Metal - Freeform, Slice of Life, The writer projecting her interests onto these idiots, peak self-indulgence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-03 15:49:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16328957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus/pseuds/Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus
Summary: A day from the lives of Eddie and Venom, post canon. Can be read on its own or as a continuation of "Lost and Found" or "Empty Halls."





	Ain't Nothing I Would Rather Do

_Beep beep beep beep beep be-_ **_CRASH!_ **

Eddie cracked their eyes open, sighing as the noise forced him to wake up and deal with the world's shit.

“You've got to stop doing this, babe,” he muttered, sitting up in the bed.

A brief twitch in their shared subconscious as Venom stretched, spreading all over their body before returning to their favoured position between their ribs.

 **“You've got to stop buying annoying alarm clocks, babe,”** they huffed, parroting their host.

Eddie chose not to reply, instead reaching for his phone as well as the clothes he laid out on the chair the night before.

 _‘Right,’_ he yawned, stretching and cringing briefly as their joints cracked. He couldn't be arsed to communicate verbally at the moment, _‘what shall it be today?’_

 **“Anything but** **_Fergalicious_ ** **,”** came the reply.

_‘Aw, why? You love it!’_

**“I hate it with every fiber of our being.”**

_‘Then why was it stuck in my head all day yesterday?’_

**“I actually had no control over that; it's not my fault that you dumbass humans get songs stuck in your heads.”**

Eddie just laughed.

They padded to the bathroom. Because it was a Friday, it was Venom’s turn to pick the song they would belt out in the shower (Eddie got the choice Monday to Wednesday; on Thursdays they flipped a coin.) A quick scroll through Eddie's Spotify playlists, and the symbiote made their choice.

Their mouth involuntarily stretched into a goofy grin as the opening chords of  _Highway to Hell_ cut through the morning silence. Not for the first time in their life, Eddie was grateful for their new apartment's soundproof walls.

After the shower was over and Eddie's back stopped bleeding - because _someone_ got horny and refused to mind their claws when they fucked - they...

 **“It's for marking,”** Venom’s voice purred inside their mind. **“You're ours, Eddie. Ours alone.”**

“I'm perfectly aware of that, you know,” Eddie grumbled, pulling on a shirt. The fabric slid over their back easily, no claw marks to be found. “Besides, it's not like my back is visible most of the time, so it's a bit pointless.”

**“You would rather be marked elsewhere?”**

Fuck, he could practically _feel_ the symbiote telepathically waggling their eyebrows. Not that the idea wasn't appealing - going around with a subtle hickey would imply that he was actually getting some and not moping around in his apartment like the loser he appeared to be.

Besides, it would be pretty hot.

“Maybe next time,” he elected to say.

Dressed and refreshed, they made a beeline for the fridge. Several weeks prior, one of them had an actually brilliant idea of preparing their breakfast the night before so that they wouldn't waste time making it in the morning, or worse, completely empty the fridge because they were too hungry to bother with preparing stuff.

**“I'm pretty sure it was my idea.”**

Eddie chuckled, _‘as if you were patient enough to even consider it.’_

A growl. **“I'm not patient, true, which is why I suggested this so that we wouldn't waste time in the morning.”**

They opened the tupperware container and took out four sandwiches. Two of them were gone before Eddie could think back:

_‘Please, knowing you, you would've eaten this stuff before the sun even set; it was surely my idea.’_

**“Was not!”**

_‘Was too.’_

**“Was not!”**

_‘Was too.’_

**“Was not!”**

_‘Was not!’_

**“Was to- OH FUCK YOU!”**

_‘Maybe later,’_ Eddie replied innocently, sipping his coffee as they scrolled through his emails. Two deadlines (one of them already met), three leads, one bank statement, five spam messages, and one message from Anne.

Eyebrows raised, they opened it.

_Hi Eddie - Dan forwarded me this a while ago and I thought that you could use it. I hope that you're coping okay without Venom, but if not, please look into this, okay? Take care of yourself._

There were a few attachments - an article about PTSD, something about depression, a list of suicide helplines, and several links leading to websites which claimed to provide support for people who lost a loved one.

They smiled, genuinely touched, before marking the email as important. They didn't actually need most of the stuff (though Anne didn't know that, of course) but the PTSD thing was worth looking into - maybe they could find a way to cope with the nightmares.

**“Eddie,”**

Eddie set the phone down, sensing a familiar tone in his symbiote’s voice. _‘Hm? What's up, babe?’_

 **“The nightmares…”** Venom swirled inside him, coiling and uncoiling around themselves. **“We do not like them. Is there a way to make them stop?”**

Yeah, he didn't like them either; pain and fire and Riot’s disgusting face and the blade sticking out of their body and the agony of being ripped apart and the soul-crushing emptiness as both of them thought the other dead and…

In truth, Eddie wasn't sure when or if they would go away. Sleeping pills didn't help, and Venom complained that they made their mind sluggish. Meditation was of no use, either, so maybe the PTSD article was really worth checking out.

A wave of fierce protectiveness poured over him and he pressed a hand over their heart, where he could feel the symbiote resting.

 _‘I'll never let that happen again,’_ he promised, trying to mentally project as much warmth as possible with that statement. _‘I won't let anything or anyone keep us apart.’_

They both could remember all too well the pain of separation; neither wished to repeat the experience.

Venom rose up from within their shoulder to nuzzle against Eddie's cheek.

 **“Will never let you go again, Eddie,”** they murmured. **“Love you too much.”**

He chuckled, petting the symbiote’s head as he finished his coffee. The warmth in their chest had little to do with the hot liquid they swallowed.

“Love you too, babe,” he replied, standing up as Venom retreated back into their body. “Wanna go now?”

**“Mhm. Don't forget your bag this time.”**

“I know.”

**“And our lunch.”**

“Yep.”

**“The earbuds are on the nightstand.”**

“We'll go get them now.”

**“If you go out without a coat again I'll turn your stomach inside out and eat it.”**

Eddie sighed, reaching for their coat. “Yes, babe.”

Of course the first song that came on when they plugged in the earbuds was _Ferga_ **_fucking_ ** _licious_. Shame that Venom stubbornly skipped it before Eddie could tease them about it.

The weather was quite chilly, so he was actually glad that the symbiote bullied him into putting on a coat. After all, a healthy body meant a healthy mind; a healthy mind meant a healthy brainmate.

Said brainmate seemed to settle for _Uptown Funk_ , a choice Eddie wholeheartedly approved of; it always made them feel all cool and badass as they walked.

 **“Eddie,”** they piped up suddenly. **“Chocolate fountain at 10 o'clock. With marshmallows.”**

 _‘Roger that,’_ they stepped into the small but cozy sweet shop and bought two portions of chocolate-covered fruit and marshmallows. One of the perks of being employed again was having enough money for that sort of thing.

And for nicer clothes - that hoodie Eddie was wearing when they first met needed to be washed three times before it returned to its pre-fuckup state, though it simply fell apart when they attempted to put it on. Oh well.

The next stop on their route to work was Mrs Chen’s shop, where they bought some more snacks as well as some lunch because, according to Venom, Eddie didn't pack enough.

“You boys bring me more profit than half of my other regulars combined,” Mrs Chen remarked when they brought their basket to the till. Chocolate, waffles, two pre-packaged burgers, chocolate, two bottles of water and one of orange juice, chocolate, a bag of assorted fruits ( **“Vitamins, Eddie”** ) aaaand you’ve guessed it: more chocolate.

She actually gave them a discount on sweets, and tossed a tube of toothpaste in for free with a pointed look.

Sure, Venom somehow helped keep their teeth up to scratch and safe from all the ridiculous shit they ate on a daily basis, but it was a nice gesture nonetheless.

They paid, ate one of the burgers, packed everything else into Eddie's bag, and left. Both were so used to this routine that they actually started setting the alarm for earlier just to have enough time for a small shopping trip here or there.

That reminded them, Eddie mused, they needed a new alarm clock.

They arrived at Eddie's workplace in no time, humming merrily to Bon Jovi and snacking on one of the chocolate bars. A quick check-in with Eddie's new boss to hand in the first draft of his newest article (dude claimed that he was a traditionalist, though they suspected that he just couldn't wrap his head around technology), a catch-up with several colleagues, a cup of cocoa from the vending machine, and they hit the road again.

Eddie loved working from home. It let them wake up whenever they wanted, wear whatever they wanted because there were no coworkers to judge them, and in general do whatever they wanted as long as he sent the stuff on time or dropped by several times a month for a meeting or two. Saved them fuel, too.

Still, he sometimes missed the Eddie Brock Report and going out in the field. He had refused to bring it back because they wanted to keep a low profile for the time being. Besides, hanging around with people meant a shit ton of temptation for Venom to grab a quick bite, usually out of someone's skull.

Their next stop was a coffee shop several blocks away where Eddie had a meeting with a contact about the whereabouts of a dude who killed five people several days prior.

 **“Bad person,”** Venom quipped, licking their lips in anticipation.

Eddie nodded, replacing the earbuds and...

_‘Venom, what is this?’_

**“Amon Amarth,”** came the reply. **“I like them.”**

Okay, so his symbiote/bodymate/boyfriend decided that they liked power metal. Nice. They carried on walking as some dude growled about Ragnarok into their ears.

Come to think of it, Norse mythology seemed to be interesting, Eddie mused. They did significantly less fucking than the Greeks if he correctly recalled his high school report. They mostly fought things, ate/drank other things, and were little shits to each other.

 _‘Sounds familiar,’_ he thought, grinning when Venom jabbed their side playfully. They should stop at the library on their way back; apparently Neil Gaiman’s retelling of some of the most well-known myths was both funny and faithful to the originals, so why not check it out?

 **“The way I see it,”** Venom hummed as they made themselves comfortable between their shoulder blades, **“we can do whatever we want.”**

Eddie nodded, adjusting the strap of his bag. Now that they had both the time and the money, they certainly could.

The song was over a little too quickly for their taste, but another came on, swiftly reminding Eddie what he was going to say.

 _‘How did you find this band?’_ he asked, not recalling ever hearing of it. Come to think of it, he never listened to much metal.

 **“YouTube recommended feed,”** came the reply. **“This one is** **_Call To Arms_ ** **by Manowar. Very good. Makes us want to fight someone.”**

 _‘Later!’_ So that's why the symbiote enjoyed power metal: lively music, growling vocals, and lyrics about emerging victorious from glorious battles.

 _When they see us, they will run for their lives._  
_To the end, they will pay for their lies._  
_So long did we wait, now we are home_.

To be fair, the song _did_ put quite a spring into their step as they entered the coffee shop, feeling like treading on a battlefield strewn with corpses, blade and claw at the ready as the enemy approached only to fall from their hand…

“Eddie!” Vanessa, Eddie's contact and old friend, snapped her fingers in front of their eyes. “Wake up, dummy, I don't have all day.”

Oh.

Oh yeah. Vanessa. Lead. Investigation. Criminal aka future dinner.

They sat down, removing the earbuds for the time being to listen to Vanessa tell them about this old crack den, abandoned for months after after a police raid, where the man was last seen by one of her colleagues.

“Jonathan thinks that he might have hostages there,” she said. “I don't know, he doesn't seem the type, but I'd still check the place out if I were still a journalist.”

Eddie nodded, jotting down all the details in his pocket notebook, before he thanked her, bought them both an americano, chatted some more about how she was doing at her new job (full time crime/suspense writer) and headed for the door, promising to buy her latest book as soon as it appeared on the shelves.

“You should come to our D&D sessions sometime,” she called out after them. “Jess is in Spain until March, so we need a tank.”

“ **What's Dee en Dee?”** Venom inquired, radiating puzzlement. **“Is it something to do with war? Why are there tanks there?”**

Eddie stopped in the doorway, his entire self lighting up internally like a Christmas tree. Oh. Oooohhhh.

 _‘Babe, you're gonna love that shit,’_ he grinned before turning back to Vanessa. “Sure! Just text me the time and place.”

He hasn't played since high school, mostly because he was too busy with the show or because neither he nor Anne had enough friends interested in the game to organise some sessions.

And if he managed to dig out his old rulebooks…

They left the coffee shop with a merry spring in their step.

 **“You're excited,”** the symbiote remarked and, upon receiving no explanation, dove into Eddie's memories while the man himself was already in the process of creating a character.

A warlock would be neat, he thought, and certainly fitting given the whole “pact with an otherworldly thing which gives them powers” thing. The eldritch invocations were a neat mechanic too; he had a feeling that they would both enjoy exploring them.

On the other hand, he had so much fun playing as his dwarven rogue back in high school; sneaking around, stabbing people, and stealing everything he could carry. If it wasn't nailed down, Spider the rogue took it home with him. If it was, he also took the nails and sometimes even whatever the thing was nailed _to_. He was a dwarf, after all; if the floor looked nice, he took it as well. Thank Moradin for pickaxes and all that.

Then again, Vanessa said that they needed a tank, and he had a feeling that Venom would approve of playing a more melee-oriented class. A barbarian, perhaps? He could even let the symbiote take the reins from time to time for a bit of roleplay. (The barbarian he had played with back in high school ate a door once, so he doubted that they would have a hard time fitting in.)

A sudden shriek of glee made him jump.

**“EDDIE! WE MUST PLAY THIS GAME! WE MUST! I WANT TO KILL A DRAGON TOO, EDDIE! LET'S MAKE A CHARACTER WHICH EATS DRAGONS FOR POWER. A MONK, EDDIE. NO WEAPONS NECESSARY, JUST OUR BODY. LET'S FIGHT AND STEAL AND KILL AND CATCH ARROWS MID-FLIGHT AND FEAST ON THOSE WHO OPPOSE US!”**

Eddie sighed, shaking their head. “I love you so fucking much, babe.”

 **“LET'S PLAY AN ORC! BIG AND STRONG! OR A GOLIATH!”** The symbiote paused to chase a thought that suddenly appeared in their mind. **“Eddie, who's Grog?”** A bit more shuffling, some digging into more obscure of Eddie's past interests, and a mental equivalent of **“!!!!!!!”** shot through their brain.

 **“Yes! Let's play a goliath! Like Grog from _Critical Role!_ Why aren't you listening to them anymore?!”** The outrage in their voice was so fucking endearing, holy shit.

 _‘I didn't have enough time during uni,’_ Eddie explained as their hands eagerly typed on their phone, searching the web for the podcast. _‘After that, I just sort of drifted away from that kind of stuff.’_

 **“UNACCEPTABLE!”** They pressed _play_ . **“NOW SHUT UP AND LET US LISTEN.”**

_‘Okay, okay. I still love you so fucking much, you know that? You're literally perfect.’_

_“_ **Shhh, shut up. No more words. No more thoughts. This Mercer guy is talking.”**

Eddie laughed, drawing several odd looks, but fuck if it mattered. Why wasn't Anne like this? Always busy and serious and _that game is too childish for me, Eddie._ He actually felt sorry for her and Dan and everyone else who wasn't him and in relationship with the most wonderful creature in the universe…

 **“One more thought and I'll bite your liver in half,”** said wonderful creature snarled. **“For the last time, shut up; they're bringing the bear into the tavern.”**

_‘Whatever you say, babe.’_

They returned home for lunch. Venom insisted that they keep listening, so Eddie busied himself with preparing food in the company of his high school friends. He didn't even realise how much he missed Vox Machina and their shenanigans, as well as D&D in general, until Venom and Vanessa dragged his memories back into the light.

All good things seemed to start with V, he mused: Vanessa, Venom, Vox Machina, vanilla ice cream, video games, viking metal (it was beginning to grow on him), vacation…

They sat on the couch, munching on Tater Tots and a burger, just listening to a bunch of nerds playing an RPG and enjoying each other's presence. Eddie didn't know that he could be so… content.

 **“Anne doesn't like D &D?**” Venom piped up suddenly, startling him.

 _‘Nope. Said she doesn't have time for that sort of thing,’_ he replied, recalling their conversation way back in New York. It felt like it was in a whole different life.

The symbiote huffed, rising out from between their shoulder blades to just… plop down on their shoulder, something Eddie found disgustingly adorable.

 **“We like Anne, but she has a bad taste,”** they said, snaking down their arm to steal a mouthful of Tots off the plate. **“Dan can have her.”**

Eddie laughed. _‘My sentiment exactly. We don't need her; we have each other and enough episodes to last us for months of listening.’_

**“Damn right.”**

After the episode was over, they put on another one. And another. And another until it was dark outside and both of them were hungry.

Eddie consulted his notebook. If Vanessa was right, the abandoned crack den was about one hour and a half(ish) away from the library, so they got up and set out. After all, he promised Venom a book on Norse mythology.

He opened Spotify for a change, and pressed _shuffle..._

  
_Vodka! Vodka!_ _  
_ _Vodka! Vodka!_

 _  
_ _Hey!_

 

“Wh…”

  
  
_Vodka, you're feeling stronger_  
_Vodka, no more feeling bad_  
_Vodka, your eyes are shining_  
_Vodka, you are the real man_  
_Vodka, wipes away your tears_  
_Vodka, removes your fears_  
_Vodka, everyone is gorgeous_ _  
_ Vodka, yeah vodka!

 

 **“Another V for the list, Eddie,”** Venom purred as he doubled over laughing at the sheer absurdity of the song and of course the symbiote picked it; it sort of resembled the effect they had on him.

 _‘What… what is this?!’_ he wheezed, digging through their pockets for his phone. ‘Vodka _by Korpiklaani? What even is that band? How did you even… what…’_

What even was his life before he met Venom?!

They carried on walking, chuckling occasionally and bickering about each other's taste in music. The library was closed for the night, unfortunately, but neither paid the matter much mind, instead continuing on their way and humming whatever the playlist spat out.

It turned out that the guy, indeed, held hostages, though all of them have been dead for at least several days. Why the dude kept their corpses around was beyond them, so they just ate him, took some photos for an article, and returned home to watch _Aggretsuko_ , a Netflix show Eddie spiritually identified with. At least they didn't have any witnesses.

**“Eddie,”**

_‘Hm?’_

The symbiote emerged from their collar bone, white eyes staring into Eddie's.

**“You're happy with me, right?”**

The question made him set down the bag of Kisses they were sharing.

“Of course I am!” he replied. “Why wouldn't I be?” Didn't the symbiote, like, feel it?

 **“I do,”** they tilted their head, evidently puzzled. **“I'm just… we… we didn't have a good start.”**

Oh yeah, Eddie sucked in air through their teeth at the memories. “Yeah, but we've worked it out, right? It's fine now. Heck, better than fine.”

**“Don't you ever miss your old life? The one you had before us?”**

With a smile, he leaned forward to plant a gentle kiss on the symbiote’s forehead.

_‘Nope. You're the best thing to ever happen to me.’_

Venom’s satisfied purr reverberated through their whole body as they nuzzled against their face.

**“I love you, Eddie.”**

_‘Love you too, babe. Wanna go sleep now?’_

**“Yes. Sleep, Eddie. After this episode.”**

_‘Mmmkay.’_

He fell asleep halfway through, curled up on the couch and bathed in soft, pale light emanating from the TV. He looked peaceful, Venom thought. Happy. Their Eddie.

They dragged a blanket over their body and turned off the TV before curling up next to their heart, its unceasing beat soothing them into rest.

Instead of nightmares, their dreams were full of Norse gods throwing hammers at goblins while some dude with a Finnish accent yelled about vodka in the background.

Sometimes, life could actually be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> Stuff I've referenced bc I'm a nerd.
> 
> Songs:  
> ● Fergalicious - Fergie  
> ● Highway To Hell - AC/DC  
> ● Uptown Funk - Bruno Mars  
> ● Twilight of the Thunder God - Amon Amarth  
> ● Call To Arms - Manowar  
> ● Vodka - Korpiklaani 
> 
> GUYS I JUST REALISED. Symbiotes feed on this hard-to-spell chemical thing found in human brains, chocolate, and potatoes. But vodka is made from potatoes. #accidentalgenius.
> 
> Other stuff:  
> ● "The Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman. Good book, and really faithful to the originals.  
> ●D&D, aka Dungeons & Dragons, a fantasy tabletop RPG and the best thing to ever happen to me.  
> ● Critical Role - a D&D podcast by some well known actors including Matt Mercer aka the dude who voices McCree in "Overwatch."  
> ● Aggretsuko - ... I don't have the words to explain it. Let's just say that Eddie identifies with the protagonist for a good reason. Please look it up, it's great.


End file.
